Leo snatched his spear off his back and spun with the speed and grace he’d honed from years of learning to keep his distance while savaging his foes. He found Zack Silverstone standing in full view where his trail had ended, hands on hips with a smirk on his lips. The man looked amused.

Leo lowered his spear. “What do you want?”

“You wanted to talk?” Zack asked easily.

Leo gave it a moment. “I still haven’t found my coin pouch.”

“Don’t see how I can help you with that. Why are you chasing my friends?”

Leo tilted his head inside his helmet. “Who?”

“The two people with me. Or did you come for me after all?”

Leo slammed the butt of his spear into the ground. “I don’t care who you’re boning, and I don’t care what your no account friends are up to. They didn’t steal from me. You did.”

“See, I didn’t, but I honestly don’t care any longer,” Zack said. “Because I’m annoyed with you.”

“You’re the annoying one.”

“No, you really are,” Zack assured him easily. “I didn’t steal your pouch. I didn’t do anything to you, and as eager as you are to duel me, I really have no desire to keep dodging you either in Grassea or back in town. We’re both adults, right? Let’s handle this like those.”

Leo gave the silence a beat before he responded. “What would you suggest?”

“We duel,” Zack said. “But in front of the Town Guards.”

Leo allowed himself a frown. “Scared you’re lose?”

“I’m Level 6. You’ve got four Levels on me. That’s why I don’t want to duel you out here in the middle of the woods, where one of us could get seriously injured. What if a Monster attacks when one of us is recovering?”

“I won’t hurt you,” Leo said. “Much. And nothing will happen if you give me my pouch.”

“Which I didn’t steal,” Zack reminded him with visible exasperation. “Anyway, that’s my offer. I’ll duel you, but only in front of the Town Guards and outside the town, where they won’t arrest us for it. We’ll have an honest contest between consenting Adventurers, and afterward, I’ll buy you a drink. All right? You look like you could use a drink.”

Zack actually sounded serious about trying to resolve this “bad blood” with a duel and drink. Leo’s respect for the other man increased yet another notch. Given how much of a boor Leo had been so far, Zack was being remarkably mature about all of this.

Moreover, Zack was still willing to duel despite their four Level difference. He wasn’t just savvy with a good head on his shoulders, but brave as well. Leo could respect all of that, though ... he couldn’t let Zack know he respected it. That would ruin the unruly image he’d worked so hard to cultivate.

“Hmph,” Leo said, as he pretended to consider it. “Fine. But we’ll do it now. No dawdling.”

“No dawdling,” Zack agreed, and strode off toward the Safe Road. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a good duel. When I beat you, though, you have to promise not to be mad.”

Leo scoffed audibly as he laughed, silently, at Zack’s refreshing bravado. “You won’t win.”

“It’ll certainly be interesting,” Zack agreed. “And after, this one-sided feud you’re attempting to keep up? It’s done. We’re done. That’s my condition, and I won’t duel with it. We duel. We drink. And that’s the end of this, understood?”

At the thought of burying the animosity between them, Leo genuinely considered letting Zack win. If Leo lost a fight to someone four Levels below him, everyone in Wolfpine would gossip about how weak he was. A weak, petty Skirmisher was not the type the Blazers recruited.

Zack would also gain notoriety as a result of winning such a duel, and helping Zack bolster his reputation was the least Leo owed the man after all the trouble he’d caused him. Leo visibly considered for as long as he dared without risking Zack would call the whole thing off. “We have an accord.”

“We have an accord,” Zack agreed. “Now, as to who actually stole your pouch?”

Leo walked onward.

“I have no idea,” Zack said. “If I see anyone walking around with a giant bundle of coins, you’ll be the first to know.”

Leo had almost let himself relax when the Rakshasa stepped out of the woods.

Zack leapt back several paces as the Demon emerged from shimmer in full view of both of them, all four muscular arms extended and all four blades gleaming in the light. It was a coal-skinned humanoid that almost had a human face save for its glowing red eyes, missing nose, and serrated teeth, and it wore only a crimson loincloth. Demons like this were rare even in Evolan.

Leo stared in mounting disbelief, yet he had his spear out and readied in less time than it took to blink. There was no way a Level 15 Demon could be in Grassea. Yet since one was here anyway, it seemed like Leo might be called upon to fight Demons today.

Zack glanced at Leo with wide eyes. He reached for the pouch at his hip. “Is that...?”

“Rakshasa,” Leo agreed grimly. “Level 15 at least, and completely immune to those little toothpicks you carry.” And here he was without his [Steel Armor].

“Run?” Zack suggested, hand still resting on his pouch. “Running’s always a good plan.”

“Go now,” Leo agreed. “I’ll hold it until you’re clear.”

With the threat of a true forever death now waiting ahead of them both, Leo had no luxury to maintain his boorish, incompetent persona. A Rakshasha could absolutely chase down and murder a Level 6 Shadower, even if he used [-Shadow Walk-], and this Demon looked in the mood to do just that. Yet as it strode far too quickly toward Zack, Leo took a step back and struck first.

[-Piercing Throw-]!

He tossed his gleaming [Steel Spear] with unerring accuracy. His Skill, [-Piercing Throw-], enhanced both his aim and his Strength. He had no luxury to gain Prowess today. The Rakshasha darted forward to avoid Leo’s thrown spear entirely, just as he’d expected it to. As he, Zack, and the Rakshasha all continued their movements forward, invisible lines formed in Leo’s head.

He dashed three steps toward Zack as Zack shrieked and ran. The demon went straight for Zack, unveering in its rage as Leo activated his second and more subtle Skill. He called that Skill precisely when the Rakshasha was between him and his still hurtling spear.

[-Windborne Recall-]!

In the space it took to blink, Leo’s spear flipped. The wind itself carried his [Steel Spear] back to him at the same speed it hard departed his hand, and this time, it came at the Rakshasha from behind. The Demon, now absolutely certain Leo was disarmed, didn’t even seen it coming, or notice that the tip of Leo’s otherwise harmless (to a Demon) spear glowed bright white.

Leo’s glowing [Steel Spear], blessed with the expensive Enchant Demonslaying, punched right through the Rakshasha’s back and out its chest. The Demon stumbled forward and dropped to both knees, staring in wide-eyed shock at the glowing white spear now protruding at least an arm’s length from its chest. Above it, its Health Bar appeared with a third charred black.

“Six Hells,” Zack whispered.

“Now we run,” Leo said. “Go!”

Zack took off at a sprint through the Deepscorn Woods toward the Safe Road. Leo, now right on his tail, followed close. Yet as he ran, he reached back with one hand while keeping his eyes ahead.

[-Windborne Refresh-]

A wave of weakness flooded Leo’s body, one he’d long ago learned to ignore. He kept running at almost the same pace despite the tingle in his arms and legs.

[-Windborne Recall-]

Limbs snapped as the sound of a hurtling object assured Leo his [Steel Spear] was once again hurtling toward his extended hand. The Rakshasha didn’t scream as the spear exited its body, but Rakshasha didn’t scream. Their implacable silence was the one of the most disturbing thing about them.

That and the fact that they attacked with four serrated swords.

Leo caught his hurtling, returning spear without looking and swung it to rest in both hands as he ran ever onward. He didn’t need to open his Status Sheet to know he was out of tricks. He’d caught the Rakshaha by surprise with his first attack, but even wounded, it would still easily finish him in a fair fight without his armor. One he had absolutely no intent of allowing today.

[-Piercing Throw-] allowed a Skirmisher to throw a spear with unerring accuracy, but it had a three minute cooldown. [-Windborne Recall-] allowed Leo to recall that spear, but it also a three minute cooldown. And finally, [-Windborne Refresh-] immediately ended the cooldown on both Skills—while consuming a full 100 Blood. In addition, it had a twelve hour cooldown.

Most Melee Classes didn’t have Skills with long cooldowns. Most Melee Classes didn’t consume lots of Blood. And many Skirmishers didn’t even bother with [-Windborne Refresh-], given it could only be used once on the average hunt. Yet Leopold Argentshade was no average Skirmisher.

He’d found the ability to repeatedly strike with great accuracy and power at a distance, twice a day, was far more likely to save him from an unexpected Monster encounter than relying on more frequently usable but less powerful Skills that required him to risk fighting up close. Once again, his foresight and the Blazer training drilled into him for a year had kept him alive.

More importantly, his training had apparently saved Zack Silverstone. Who, for some reason, was being attacked by a Level 15 Rakshasha. It seemed Zack had also annoyed some other people.

But they’d discuss all that once they weren’t both skewered by Demon swords.